Saturday, March 31, 2012

So. We got married just a week ago! It was perfectly imperfect and wonderfully fun and thank you all for all the well-wishes - I promise I'll post some more photos and recipes from it soon. Nelle was a pretty flowergirl, don't you think?

We returned home with some exciting new toys for our house - and in particular, kitchen (!!) - as well as a cupboard full of potatoes, a fridge full of feta and a garden full of tarragon.

(Also a garage full of wine, but I hardly consider that a problem).

They say that snipping your herbs off the top makes them bushier and thicker, and I wanted to make my little tarragon trimmings sing, so I perused my cookbook collection for ideas. (Stephanie Alexander was particularly helpful ... )

Tarragon loves potatoes, cheese, eggs, and mayonnaise.
Why not just use all of the above?
Oh yes.

I have to preface this recipe with a note - there are so many recipes out there where you grate the potato, salt it, squeeze it, etc, then mix it with yummy things like feta and mint. And it somehow magically cooks up perfectly ...

I've never gotten the shredded potato thing to work. So we're doing these little guys mashed. Because potatoes are happy food, and stress is not allowed.

The process
1. Preheat the oven to 200C (400F). Line a pizza stone or baking tray with baking paper.

2. Mix the potatoes, feta, eggs, herbs and sea salt together into a thick paste. Using your hands, form into small (~5cm) balls and place onto the tray 2cm apart. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 min, or until golden brown.

The cost
My cheeky estimate would include potatoes that needed using up, and feta that needed using up (so ... super-cheap). If you bought stuff fresh for this, and used organic, it would still just cost you $6-$8.